‘There’s no bravery in government’: NSW casino watchdog lashes Labor’s pokie failures

November 16, 2026 — 5:00amThe outgoing head of NSW’s casino watchdog has lashed the Minns government over its inaction on poker machine reform and called for an overhaul of the regulation of the state’s multimillion-dollar clubs.In his final interview as chief commissioner of the NSW Independent Casino Commission, Philip Crawford said the government had bowed to industry pressure and ignored repeated calls to implement mandatory carded play on the state’s estimated 87,000 machines.Retiring chief commissioner of the NSW Independent Casino Commission Philip Crawford has lashed the Minns government’s inaction on poker machine reform.Sitthixay Ditthavong“Government have a fair bit of evidence around the damage of poker machines. I don’t think there’s a lot more needed,” Crawford told the Herald. “I don’t think anyone could really challenge this government to bring in big reforms.”Crawford’s comments – his fiercest public condemnation of Premier Chris Minns’ poker machine reforms – have drawn support from advocates who have heaped further criticism on the government’s recently announced gambling protections.“You’ve got to have bravery, and the political climate now for bravery is limited because of re-elections,” Crawford said. “There’s no bravery in government at the moment.”Crawford, who next week retires from his role as the inaugural commission head, urged the state’s leaders to prioritise harm minimisation over the demands of powerful gambling and hospitality industry heavyweights chasing profit.Crawford, who for several years lobbied the state government to introduce mandatory carded play, said the government had failed to act on the findings of Project Islington, an unprecedented inquiry into money laundering in licensed venues in NSW.“We’ve got nowhere,” Crawford said.“The amount going through pokies is going through the roof. It’s billions. It’s a lot of money.”The inquiry, a joint investigation led by the NSW Crime Commission and the state’s Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority, revealed that criminals were funnelling billions of dollars into poker machines and recommended cashless gaming cards to stem the illegal cash flow.Crawford said the government had bowed to industry pressure and ignored repeated calls to implement cashless gaming.Reuters“It’s almost unarguable,” Crawford said. “Why not with the bigger clubs?”Former Liberal premier Dominic Perrottet in 2023 promised to implement cashless gaming on the back of Project Islington’s damning findings – a pledge the Minns government has refused to match.“Industry won’t like it and manufacturers will throw the spanner in the works as much as they can,” Crawford said.“There’ll be a lot of pressure from industry … not to make any further changes.”A tranche of gambling reforms announced by Gaming and Racing Minister David Harris in August, including the use of facial recognition technology in gaming rooms, a third-party exclusion scheme and the scrapping of gaming VIP programs, did not include mandatory carded play.The government will instead implement alternatives that allow players to continue gambling with cash if they prefer. It said the foundations for technology to facilitate account-based play, rather than mandatory cashless gaming, would gradually be introduced as part of a staged approach. Venues will be able to choose whether they implement account-based gaming as the state remains on track to eclipse $10 billion in poker machine losses this year.NSW Gaming and Racing Minister David Harris has defended the government’s poker machine reforms.Nikki ShortHarris defended the reforms, which he said were the most comprehensive introduced by any NSW government to reduce gambling harm.“Before any account-based system implemented that is secure, reliable and fit for purpose, it is necessary to upgrade and modernise the core technology infrastructure of NSW’s gaming machine network that largely relies on legacy technology,” he said.The Minns government maintains its proposed alternatives equal the anti-money laundering and harm minimisation benefits of cashless gaming, despite contradicting calls from law enforcement, critics and advocates.Crawford believes the government should establish a centralised gambling watchdog to oversee casinos, clubs and pubs across the state. The state’s mega clubs, Crawford said, should be subjected to the same levels of scrutiny as Crown and Star casinos.“I don’t see why they shouldn’t have, if they’ve got nothing to fear, better regulation,” he said.“On any view of it, any definition anywhere around the world, they’re casinos.”Gambling watchdog powers should be expanded, Crawford said, adding that legislation allowing regulators to hold far-reaching inquiries had been gradually watered down over several years.Crawford rebuked industry concerns that the introduction of mandatory carded play would result in job losses.“There’s no way I’m saying cut out the industry, and I’m not a wowser, but at the end of the day we’re offering something that has such potential to do damage and … which is shown to be addictive. Why can’t we make it a bit safer?” he said.Wesley Mission chief executive and gambling reform advocate Reverend Stu Cameron echoed Crawford’s criticisms, accusing the government of “tinkering around the edges” of reform.“There’s been some good things done … but the reforms that will significantly reduce and indeed prevent harm have been left on the shelf,” he said.Cameron, who sat on the government’s Independent Panel on Gaming Reform, is pushing for a national or state-based body to regulate all casinos and licensed venues where poker machines are played.“We need to treat them for what they are … If it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, it is a duck. They are casinos, for all intents and purposes. Treat them as such, regulate them as such and don’t give them a free pass like they’ve been having for decades.”Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. 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